Black Sweetness

I watched Elly make the simplest dessert ever! Simple in Malay terms means boil and forget it! This dessert is not foreign to me in any way – I’ve seen my mom make it (seeing is not the same as observing and taking notes) and watched both of my parents enjoying it as it transports them to a comfort moment in their lives, perhaps a moment in their childhood.

For those who know me, I am not too excited about Malay desserts because mainly, I’m not a big fan of the coconut. Luckily these days, I am open to coconut milk and slowly enjoying the sweet & richness of it.

The dessert I’m referring to is bubur pulut hitam (black glutinous rice porridge), a black sweetness that will bring to you to many levels of culinary desserts. It is rich yet light. Gentle yet it bites. You’ll see…

Bubur Pulut Hitam

Ingredients:

1 cup of black rice or black glutinous rice

6 tablespoon of granulated sugar.

1 small can of coconut milk

1 pandan leaf (knotted) – screwpine leaf (optional)

lots of water

Method

Rinse the rice until the water comes out clear, even though it will be purple or black. Soak the rice for about 10 mins but I had soaked it overnight. I added water to cover the rice and then a bit more, perhaps another couple of inches of water. Boil the rice. Add more water if needed. Add sugar and pandan leaf, stir and let it cook and thickened. It should be thick like a stew.

Warm up the coconut milk and add a tiny bit of salt to desired taste. Top the bubur with the coconut upon serving. Serve warm.

Yang hitam manis… (Black sweetness)

~Nor

Nor + Elly

Nor’s Verdict

As I stated above, this is very simple nonetheless it does take a while for it cook. I had added quite a bit of water during the cooking process that I did dilute the sweetness of it. Which I prefer. I like the light sweetness of the bubur. I did mention it is light. The calories count on the other hand, not so much.